


Pidge Captured

by BlueDemon1995



Category: Voltron - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-06-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:40:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22645804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueDemon1995/pseuds/BlueDemon1995
Summary: Pidge goes on a mission and gets captured.
Relationships: Keith & Pidge | Katie Holt, Keith (Voltron)/Kogane Akira, Keith/Pidge, Pidge Gunderson - Relationship, kidge
Comments: 17
Kudos: 70





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I truly have no business writing a new story! But here I am, hope you enjoy!! Please leave notes!

How the fuck did this happen? Pidge frowns trying to concentrate and pinpoint where it all went wrong for her. Was it when she took this assignment? She knew she’d not been in the field, for well, way too long. She huffed out a breath, no that wasn’t it. She’d been training regularly; she was probably in better shape a few weeks ago than when she first entered space. Back then she didn’t know how to fight at all. Maybe it was being paired up with an alien who seemed to think females were not that smart? Nah, she proved to him the errors of his ways. Many times. In fact, the mission was going fine…until just it wasn’t. 

Sighing, she thinks it had to be when the battery died on their spacecraft. Yes, before that things were slightly derailed, but it still was salvageable. Now, shit, now she was in trouble. And while she’d been trying to keep her brain occupied, she knows that she’s slipping. And the probability of her surviving this fucked up mission was low. So, while she trusted in the intergalactic team she was placed on in theory, she just didn’t see them rescuing her or her team in time. In fact, she knew it wasn’t going to happen. She could calculate the odds. Sighing she again opened her eyes and cursed human eyesight for sucking so much in dim lighting.

Logically, she knew she needed to push through the pain, hunger, cold and fear so at least her death wasn’t completely in vain. She planned on at least giving someone from her team a chance of being rescued. If only she could get her one hand free. She had kept a bone from whatever crap they fed her a week ago. She should be able to escape the cell and at least send a message. That was her best option at this point. Seeing as how they stopped feeding her a few days ago, time was at a premium. At least there was the dirty water. (Sigh) What she wouldn’t do for a peanut butter cookie or a slice of pizza. She shook her head and was instantly dizzy, ok, deep breath, patience yields focus, she had things to do. She’s trained for this, though, she just didn’t think it would happen after the war ended.

Meanwhile, on the Atlas, Shiro was holding an emergency meeting with the remaining Voltron paladins, selected top Garrison and Blade members. All individuals were seated around the conference table, while on a holo call with the organization that lost Pidge. Tension was high, worries and things no one had the guts to verbalize saturated the air, choking them all. Shiro started, “Pidge and her team has been out of communication for at least a week. I was notified this morning, so thanks for everyone getting here so quickly. We have the commander of their organization here and”

Keith interrupts, standing up, and assertively declaring, “NO, no, we aren’t acting like this is a standard op rescue mission. Cuz it’s not! This is Pidge. PIDGE! So, I’m not following protocols or rules here. What are we going to do? Now-not after some long drawn out discussion. We all got the files, and more importantly we all know she won’t have much time left at this point. We’ve had no contact from anyone and time is passing too quickly for discussions. We need a plan and we need to move.”

Shiro locks eyes with Keith, stares and nods. “You’re right. This is not standard op. So anyone who has a problem with that can leave now. We are operating outside of the books on this one.” He looks around the room and when no one moves, he nods. “Okay, here’s what I got.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, so a bunch of my work got lots :(
> 
> So now I gotta try and remember what I where I was going with this. Any feedback is appreciated~

Pidge has finally managed to get her hands and legs free while unfortunately still being locked in a cell. She has meticulously planned how to get to the communication center and her message is planned. She’s figured out how to get the message out with as few characters as necessary so it shouldn’t get blocked and she just needs to avoid capture before she is done. Now all she has to do is wait for someone to walk by and get them to step in. Which is going to be harder than she thought since they aren’t even giving her water anymore. Fuck! Okay, maybe if she makes enough noise they will come and check on her, or if she pretends to be sick…or maybe she can escape out of the vents. She looks up, damn, they are high but if she can manage to get up there and use the bone as a screwdriver…there’s a chance. 

Meanwhile…Matt is beyond frustrated. His baby sister is missing and the entire fucking group she was working with are all incompetent dumb asses. While they voiced their absolute unappreciation for his verbal articulation of this, Matt doesn’t care. Keith was right, they were running out of time. The room was full of people who wanted to find Pidge, but no plan seemed viable. Instead plan after plan was deemed implausible. Keith finally pulled him out the conference room-to deck off the room. “Hey, you and Pidge have tons of tech right. Can you get a reading on where she’s at using that?”

Matt responds slowly thinking about how he could make this work, “I have a reading but it’s light years away and the ‘planet’ isn’t really a planet. Assholes didn’t do their research fully and gave Pidge some half baked plan. Which I fucking went over with her and said yeah go for it. But the shit isn’t a planet, it’s actually a huge ship. So, it’s moving. I don’t know how but it’s making huge jumps. (Closes eyes-voice lowered) I fucked up. I said yeah go. (Eyes open and locked on Keith’s) I was wrong. (Voice cracking) I thought this would get her out of her funk. She hasn’t been eating or sleeping well, more than usual. I know she’s struggling even though she didn’t say and she won’t see the counselor that my mom found for her… and now I’ve gone and killed her. I can’t believe this is happening. Save for world for what?!”

Keith shakes his head, “Wait, not eating or sleeping? Why don’t I know this? I talked to her a few weeks ago. It had to be right before this. Fuck, scratch that, no, no. I’ll get my answers from her. Because she’s NOT dead. She’s smart and tough, and she’s still alive. I know it. I feel it. Maybe the other team members are lost but, not Pidge. Hell, her ingenuity kept us alive more times than I count. Damnit. *hands pulling on his hair* Give me all the locations you have. Blade ships are everywhere. I can have Cosmo flash me somewhere closer and use a cruiser to get to her. I just need to know an area where she is. I’m not losing her, *softly* I can’t!!”

Matt looks at Keith, “You know, … this isn’t a one man show.”

“Yeah, yeah, so I’m told. Repeatedly, but Blades work better alone. I’ll send coordinates when I’m there, but we don’t have the time for this coordinated planning crap. She’s *voice breaking* been gone too long. At this point we are fighting the clock.”

Lance, Hunk, James and Veronica move in closer, after clearly ease dropping. James says, “I couldn’t help but overhear your half-baked plan. As usual, you aren’t thinking clearly. It’s too dangerous with just one person, especially if Katie is injured or unconscious and needs to be carried. I can go too.”

Lance shakes his head, “No, if anyone is going it’s me. She’s mine too, mi familia. Plus, I know how to work with Keith. Hunk and Matt can coordinate here cuz they know the tech piece.”

Matt interjects, “No, no, I’m her actual brother, I should be there. In fact, I need to be there. She was there for me. She found me in space, let me do this.”

Hunk looks forlornly, “Whatever helps bring her home, I’ll do. Guys we can’t argue about this. We just need to get her back. Quickly.”

Veronica looks at Lance, “Sweetie, you haven’t been in the field in ages either, maybe you should stay here.”

Lance stubborn than ever replies, “No, you don’t understand, I want to be there. I couldn’t save Allura, I can help Pidge. I need this.”

Keith runs his hand through his hair, oblivious to the sighs of the female garrison cadets below them on the terrance and replies, “Look, I’m through wasting time, we need to figure this out ASAP and leave. Pidge has been gone too long. Matt get a hold of her last reading, in fact all of them, maybe if we get close, we can pick something else up. Didn’t she say you GPS her through her earrings…or was that a joke?”

Matt laughs, “Yeah, that was just a joke, I just know her really well and know where she likes to hide. Buuuutttt, I think I could reverse track her new grappling hook we made. She kept losing it in her messy work area, so we installed some tracking into it but that was just for her but maybe…if we can hack it, and we get close enough I should be able to get a reading. Keith, you’re a genius!”

Keith solemnly stated, “Let’s get her.”

Griffin states, “Look, most of you have family who would miss you if something bad happened, and Matt, your parents can’t lose the both of you. Let me go. There’s no one who is going to miss me. But more importantly, I want to be there and help Katie. I want to.”

Keith stares at Griffin, “I don’t care who comes, but know whoever it is, know that Pidge is my first priority. Period.”

Matt takes a deep breath, “Let me talk to Shiro privately, see what he thinks the best play is. Stay here. Be ready to move.”

Meanwhile, Pidge hasn’t seen a guard in days. So, she had to leave through the vents. There were no initial problems and as she’s small, she was able to maneuver easily. Unfortunately, she hasn’t eaten in days and with the limited water, she’s weaker than she thought. Much weaker. Nor did she didn’t realize how badly her hand was injured, or her ankle or how moving would make her head hurt so much….so that was fun to discover when moving in cramped quarters. At some point she must have passed out because when she woke, she heard the scramble of alarms and yells of staff trying to find her. She froze to avoid detection and again wished she had her data pad, so she knew where the hell she was going. Finally, after what seemed like days, she was able to get to the main communication center. She just needed to wait for the center to have one staff member then she could drop in. Being as weak as she was, this wasn’t going to be easy, but she knew she had to do it. 

At the right time, she got down and incapacitated the soldier before he could sound the alarm. She sent her message to the team she was on and more importantly back home to her real team. She figured by this point they must know that things went to shit. In fact, as she typed out commands on the console, she could imagine their reactions now. Matt blaming himself and being moody, trying to reassure her parents all would be well while being scared. Meanwhile Shiro would be trying to come up with a plan to rescue everyone, coordinating with all interested parties. Hunk would probably be there acting supportive and cooking for everyone. She looked down at her hands, thinking of Lance. 

Breath hitching, she thought this might be the hardest for him. He really hasn’t recovered from Allura’s loss and while she wasn’t as important to him as her, she still didn’t think this was going to be good for him. Absently she stared at the blood that was pooling on the floor from her arm injury. She hoped when Lance found out someone would stay with him and take care of him. She knew his family has helped him a lot and Hunk would probably be there for him too. Then her mind finally drifted to Keith.

Keith, just thinking of him made her smile and grow warmer. He’s grown up so much since the day she first met him, blowing up that facility. Absently she wondered if they would even be able to find him and let him know she was missing. IF they were, she knew he’d be ready to jump into action. Not because he felt something special for her but because that’s the kind of guy he is. He always acts and tries to help. 

Her eyes close for a moment and lets. her mind just drift. She knew her energy was waning, but since she sent the message, she knew it was ok to rest. So, she thought about her deep secret feelings for Keith and what she wished would happen. It was her favorite daydream, Keith returning home, realizing how grown she was, being struck by her beauty   
(Haha). Then he’d ask her to come with him on his missions because he can’t stand to be away from her anymore. Eventually they’d get married, settle down and have kids. She silently laughed at herself, God she was pathetic. Here she was dying, and she was daydreaming about a boy liking her. But her smile faded as she realized, now she would never have a chance at any relationship with anyone. Lovely.

Opening her eyes, she hoped she was able to save some of the members of her crew. She couldn’t believe that at none of the other three teammates weren’t still alive. While she hadn’t seen any of them since they were separated, she hoped, her message made a difference. Pidge absently noticed her hand was quickly losing mobility and combined with the blood loss, she felt lightheaded. She decided to make as much trouble for the insurgents as she could. She was unlocking doors, dumping gas and fluids, and trying to type one handed while keeping her one eye closed. They would rue the day they took her prisoner. She smiled and laughed, God she was sounding more like Lance and Keith everyday. She missed her real teammates, more than she ever knew was possible. 

But if she was honest, ever since Allura left, they weren’t really even a team anymore. Everyone went their separate ways and she was having trouble sleeping. Nightmares plagued her and she couldn’t help but think Allura was needed here more than she was. *boom, boom* Uh oh, looks like fun time is up. She could see them trying to get in from the monitors, but she had added a few fun explosions to keep them busy. Maybe she would just pass out in here and never wake up. Best case scenario. She really didn’t feel like starving to death or being tortured. Pidge closed her eyes and put her head on the console. Finally, she could just let herself rest, she did what she needed to do…what she could. She hoped she made her guys proud. 

Keith was aboard a Blade ship near the last location they had for Pidge. Griffin ended up coming with him at Shiro’s direction. Keith knew Cosmo wasn’t a real dog but regardless he found a shirt of his that Pidge had worn, that…he somehow kept but never washed. Deliberately pushing from his mind that memory, he leaned down to Cosmo, “Boy, I need you to take me to Pidge, please. She needs us. Please.” Cosmo sniffed and huffed, and whined, almost quivering. Keith whispered, “I know, Pidge. Please, I, if you understand, I need to be by Pidge. Please” at this point his voice broke and Cosmo stood at attention. Keith looked up, “James, grab on.” But one second before they could grab on, their communicator went off. 

Griffin answered, “Go.” Both men listened intently while Shiro details the message Pidge had managed to get off-complete with her coordinates. Keith murmured, “Katie, I’m coming for you, hold on.” Cosmo barked, and both men and space dog blinked out of the room.


	3. Not the Rescue Planned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge thought she had a good chance of being rescued...she was kinda wrong!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like the latest installment! I really appreciate comments!

Pidge comes to and realizes she’s wearing her sports bra, underwear and nothing else. She keeps her eyes closed, trying to take stock of her body. She feels sore yet her injuries seem to be healed. How long has she been out? Where the heck is she? She tried to catalogue the noises around her. Concentrating, it sounds like at least two individuals are around her, speaking a different language and she thinks her arm has stopped bleeding. She can’t tell if it’s been stitched or just stopped bleeding. While she’s sore she isn’t in pain. She’s definitely cold and feels restraints on her wrists and ankles. She debates opening her eyes but when a door whooshes open, she keeps them closed. After a moment she hears a voice near her ear whisper, “You can open your eyes, I know you are awake.”

She slowly opens her eyes, grimacing at the way the light hurts her eyes and head. “Where the hell am I?” 

As her vision clears, she sees a very large alien standing close, with humanoid features but all the same definitely not human. It appears male, with a strange yellow glowy skin, with four arms and two legs. His eyes are rather large and bug like but his mouth looks like a humans as well as his body/limbs. He’s very tall, probably eight feet at least. She’s a little unnerved with how intently he is staring at her. Licking her lips, she whispers, “Don’t make me repeat myself. Where…the…hell…am I? Where’s my team?”

This alien smiles, revealing sharper than human teeth, “I received your message and have rescued you. You are now mine.” Pidge groans, closing her eyes, this cannot be happening. How THE FUCK could her luck be this bad??? She hesitates to open her eyes again, hoping this is just a weird dream brought on by pain and dehydration. Shit hell??

“My name is Keoni, and I am the captain of this ship. I raided the ship you were being held on and I had my medical personnel heal you, so you can be claimed. *pause* You are very beautiful and my second stated you were a paladin of Voltron which means you are brave and strong. A perfect match to me. Our spawn will be a perfect breed.”

Pidge hoped her message got out. Because she was not having babies with this dude. She sighs, “Can I have my clothes and some food?”

Keoni runs a hand down her body, causing her to shake. Shit, she does not have the energy for this. But then he nods, slowly, “You will be moved to a secure room and be given garments befitting your status as my future mate. Remember, you owe your life to me.”

Fuck that, she’s alive because she a fighter. She doesn’t owe him a damn thing. 

A smaller alien enters and puts some kind of collar on her before removing her restraints. This alien looks like a house cat but human sized. Where is she?!? Pidge can feel that the collar is exerting some kind of power over her, resulting in the fact that it feels like she can’t move of her own volition. She’s pulled along and put in a huge fancy room, with a type of bed on the floor and connecting bathroom. The lights seem abnormally bright, but she goes in the bathroom and after locking the door, takes a long hot shower. At least the collar is waterproof. She can move but her reactions seem slow and sluggish. Looking at her arm, she thinks they must have glued it. Did they give her blood? Is that even possible??? She knows she had to be down blood from bleeding out. 

While the ship is different, she can definitely figure things out. There’s no toothpaste so she rinses her mouth out and gets dressed. Then she just stares at her reflection in the mirror. Ugh these clothes. She looks like a sexy pirate. She has a white flows blouse that hangs off her shoulder and dips way to low. Thankfully the shirt has a built in bra so there’s that. Then she’s wearing a tighter skirt with a jagged edge and boots. No freaking socks which make her crazy because, really who wears boots without socks?!? Who is this woman? What happened? 

If her message got out, where’s her real team? Did they get it or is she really on her own? Her head hurts and all she knows is she isn’t getting married or breeding. But not knowing a few big details mean it’s on her to come up with a plan. Soon. Fml.


	4. A Brother’s Perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt’s perspective of his sister’s disappearance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, I think this is the first story I am going to actually finish!! Hope you enjoy and hopefully I’ll get back to my other stories! Please drop a note!

Matt was beyond livid. How did his life get here? Couldn’t his family catch a break? While completely unprofessional, he had a total meltdown when he first heard the news. Thank goodness he was alone with Shiro, who didn’t judge. He just felt responsible and was so quiznacking worried. But when he finally calmed down and looked in Shiro’s eyes he knew that he was right there with him. They stayed a while, just sitting in the dark conference room trying to work out a new plan. Trying to get their emotions under check and at least back to the point where they could pretend they were professionals. Sigh.

When they got back to the main conference room, they were met with Mr. and Mrs. Holt who didn’t follow directives and were now on the Atlas as well. Matt could see this had taken a toll on them both but he respected that they needed to be here, closer to the action than back on Earth. After everyone was settle in the room Shiro finally asked for a full report via the link they had set up. He stands at the head of the table, with all parties squeezed in the room to hear all the details. Not that it even matters at this point but they all needed to feel like they were doing something, anything to get Pidge back. 

On the holo screen both Keith and Griffin looked battle worn, solemn and tired. Keith waves to Griffin to relay what happened. Griffin suddenly stands straight, giving the report like he was back at the Garrison, very stiff and proper. “Sir, we arrived at the coordinates Paladin Holt supplied, or where the transmission originated from, if you will. Upon arrival we immediately entered active combat. The original Galra ship was in the process of being attacked by *cough* space pirates. They took supplies, killed Galra crew and managed to take *growl* Katie. The pirates retreated and while we have captured some and some are dead, I would estimate a good majority were able to escape. Upon a thorough search we found two members of Katie’s team, with one still missing and presumed dead. A Blade ship is on its way and our next step is to question the remaining crew. Sir.”

A day later, Matt sat in a forgotten rec room with the remaining paladins. It was late, but no one could really sleep. His parents had each other and they were better for it. Yet, he couldn’t help feeling like a third wheel. Because Matt didn’t have a significant other at this time, he had Pidge. They worked together, hung out, laughed, fought. She was probably one of his best friends. In fact, since the end of the war, this was probably the longest he has gone without talking to her. Teasing her, working with her…God, he was a mess. Then he looked around the room and thought no one else was faring much better. Shiro, Lance and Hunk, they all looked like shit as well. No one can sleep without knowing if Pidge was safe. Was she hurt? Has she eaten? What if she was being tortured? And they were so damn close to getting her!

His gaze landed on his other best friend, who was unfortunately, not handling Pidge’s capture well. In fact, Shiro has been taking the complete opposite route of his parents and was currently avoiding Curtis. He knows this first hand because Curtis gave him an earful until Matt told him he didn’t know what Curtis wanted him to do. Shiro loved Pidge as much as he did. She was his little sister. They were hurting. Curtis deflated and said he just wanted Shiro to let him in. Damn. What could he say to that? He feels for him but honestly, this was Pidge and he didn’t have the energy for this now. He ended up patting Curtis’ shoulder and telling to just be patient. 

But then his mind went down a path that caused everyone in the room to just disappear. He couldn’t help but wonder, what could he have done differently, could he have been faster?? It shouldn’t have taken Keith of all people to ask about tracking her. He should have thought of it sooner, he should of…Shiro kicked his foot, grabbing his attention. 

“Stop. We did everything we could. Look, in a few hours, Hunk is going to patch us into the surveillance of the questioning of the pirates. We can see if we can help them figure out where Pidge is now. I have to believe that if they took her, they were going to keep her alive.” 

Hunk nodded. “I agree, I was thinking, maybe they knew she was a Paladin? Do you think they will ransom her? I mean they are pirates right? Don’t pirates just want loot or money? They can’t be that different from Earth pirates right? Do you think the Garrison will pay a ransom?”

Lance looked up, “I don’t think the Garrison or Earth will pay a ransom. Fuck. Can we get to the Blade ship? Maybe Matt and I can go and help. We don’t have anyone holding us here. I just need to get closer so maybe I can help. Hunk, you and Shiro have partners that need you so need to be here. But I honestly don’t think I can stay out of the action anymore. Please. I couldn’t help Allura, I couldn’t do anything really. I need to help Pidge.”

Matt quickly agreed. “Yes, please, we can take a ship and get out there, no wait!! Cosmo can take us!” I looked over to Shiro, who looked sad, he puts his hand on his shoulder, “Shiro?”

Shiro is silent for a few minutes. “I‘ll call Keith. But I’m coming too. I’ll tell Curtis and your dad; he can take over command of the Atlas. (Looks up at me) Matt don’t argue. I know what I’m doing.”

I reply, “I don’t think you do. Man, Curtis isn’t going to like you leaving. Talk to him.”

Hunk stands, “I’ll pack. I’m coming too. Don’t think you can talk me out of it. I’ll ask what Shay wants to do, but no matter what I’m going.” He gets up and leaves first, patting each of us on our back as he leaves. 

Several hours later, it’s now morning and we are in the hanger waiting for Cosmo to arrive. His parents are there as well, hugging him and telling him to be careful. Turns out Shay has decided to come as well, and I don’t see Curtis so, I’m guessing he chose not to come or he just isn’t happy with Shiro. I really hope this experience doesn’t kill their marriage, but he can’t bring himself to tell Shiro to stay back. He knows he needs to be on hand too. Cosmo poofs in and there’s no time for second thoughts. We all need to keep moving forward.

It’s been a crazy day. The Blades assigned them a group room with Griffin while Hunk and Shay got a private room. Keith, as a blade, already has a room on a different level. Not that anyone was interested in sleeping, they just dropped their stuff off and went to the interrogation area. But, after a few hours, he wondered, what was going on between his little sister and these two men? 

Both Griffin and Keith were being especially ruthless when questioning the space pirates they had captured. Matt actually was shocked. The Blades took it without a blink so he was assuming this was normal for them. But, Matt had never seen Keith like this. While he didn’t know Griffin as well, he knew this was not Garrison interrogation techniques. It was like watching bad cop and badder cop. Neither seemed to care that they saved two of Pidge’s teammates. They were solely focused on finding out where Pidge was. God, I’m her brother and I’m having a hard time watching them. Where was Pidge??? If they didn’t find her…what was that going to do to all of them?

Finally, Shiro had enough and intervened when it looked like Keith might really kill the pirate he was questioning. He called both Griffin and Keith in a small viewing room. “Both of you stop! Killing the pirate isn’t going to get Pidge back. We need someone to cooperate!! So both of you, get out of here until I can get some answers. And that’s an order.”

Griffin listens an actually stomps off and slams the door. Keith on the other hand-seems to just fall into a chair. “Shiro, I need to find her. (Hands running through his hair) I know, I’m not acting especially honorably, but I have to find her. Don’t you understand? I can’t fail (whispering) I can’t fail her.”

Shiro replies, “Do you finally recognize that you love her?”

Both Keith and I freeze. Love??? Shit when did this happen? My eyes snap to Keith as he replies, haltingly, “I…I… don’t know what you mean. I’d do the same for anyone on my team…anyone of you.”

Shiro levels a look at him, slamming his robotic hand on the table. In a low and steady voice he starts, calming stating “Really? That’s what you are going with? In case, YOU have forgotten, YOU grabbed Pidge’s arm in the mental field, no one else’s. YOU eat lunch with Pidge on the Atlas every chance you get. YOU remember to call Pidge. YOU DON’T EVEN CALL ME! Don’t lie to yourself now. We’ll get her back, we must, because quite frankly I can’t accept another option. But I don’t know what she will have been through. And honestly, I’m just tired of seeing you dance around the issue that you fucking LOVE her! I know you are scared. I get it. But more, *voice quieter* you are IN love with her. This whole episode should make it clear to you, don’t waste any more time. It hasn’t escaped any of our notice that you had a FREAKIN shirt that she wore that smelled like her, because you didn’t wash it, ON HAND!!!”

Keith opened his mouth…then closed it. He then closed his eyes, eventually laying his head on his arm. “Shiro, I can’t ruin what we already have. I don’t think I can take that risk. But, yeah, I can’t say you’re wrong. But we need to find her regardless of what our relationship is or could be. (Quietly) And it hasn’t escaped my notice that Griffin is right here with me every fucking step of the fucking way. The Boy Scout, who is breaking just as many rules as me. Fuck. So what are we going to do? I can’t stop.”

Shiro smiled, “Well I finally have some good news. Colleen has been busy channeling her energies into something productive. She has a truth serum that should work on most alien life forms. And your space dog has just gotten it to me, so, let’s see what this asshole has to say.”


	5. Chapter 5-Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally get their girl!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So today has been a pretty rough day...and it’s my birthday so what I’m saying is...my year can only get better!

Good news finally. The aliens were highly susceptible to the truth serum and they quickly found out how to track the pirate’s vessel. The pirate ship had a slew of tech that virtually made it invisible to other ships. Lucky for them, they managed to capture one of the tech aliens and he sang like the proverbial canary. As they were tracking in realtime, they simultaneously got ready for their mission. Matt and Hunk end up electing to stay with the Blades on their ship. While they wanted desperately to help get Pidge, they knew they needed to assist with hacking the pirate ship, providing necessary details to rescue Pidge and provide cover. Shay was even helping Coran try and get some medical pods up to par, to be ready for Pidge and of course, help the two rescued crew members they already had. 

That left Kolivan, Krolia, Keith, Griffin, Lance and Shiro on rescue duty. It was decided that Kolivan and Krolia would serve as the distraction so the others could locate Pidge. They didn’t have a current signal for her, but Keith was quick to point out that they would have disabled everything to keep her and avoid detection. Matt had hacked *cough* found the specs of the ship and gave them a few options where they may be holding her. With no ransom request, everyone left the Blades ship knowing that the only option was to bring Pidge home, no matter what.

Elsewhere…

Pidge was busy saving herself. She was slowly exploring the room, trying to find a viable escape route. The ceiling was out of the picture as they were extremely high ceilings but there had to be another way. While she was tired, sore and still had a nagging headache she wasn’t going to stop until she was dead or home. Nothing else would do. She had immediately dimmed the lights to help aide in her search working with her hands due to her headache. But with the supposed wedding quickly approaching, she had no choice. She had to find a way out even though she was so exhausted she would rather be sleeping.

Eventually she was able to hack the door system using make shift tools after what she figured was about day. She grabbed a shirt and placed some food in it and tied it up so it could be easily carried. As she stepped out of the room quietly, Pidge was hoping that she could find a control room to get the schematics of the ship so she could find an escape pod or ship. It didn’t have to be amazing just working enough to get her out of here. She could always land and send a message or upgrade a ship once she was free. She took a deep breath, focused on the goal and moved carefully down the corridor, hoping they didn’t have cameras everywhere. Hoping they figured due to her size she would be resting. Hoping that her luck would finally change for the better. 

As she made her way down the hall, she thought she heard voices. She quickly ducked in a doorway hiding in the shadows until there was a flash and Cosmo suddenly knocked her down and was licking the side of her face. “Cosmo!!! How did you find me boy? (Looking around) Is Keith” 

She is suddenly transported to Keith. Or more accurately, directly in front of him, with Cosmo circling the both. She looked up into Keith’s wide eyes and smiles. “Hey stranger. About time!”

Keith’s arms encircle her tightly, holding her close and she finally feels safe, for the first time in…a long while. Then she feels someone grab her from Keith and before she can even put up a fight, she hears Shiro’s voice, “Matt, do you copy, we have Katie. We have her!” She looks up into Shiro’s eyes and she knows she’s going to lose it. He looks awful. Her eyes well with tears, and she relaxes into Shiro embrace, holding him tightly “It took you guys long enough! Didn’t I leave you a good enough trail?”

They all let out a laugh and she looks around to see the whole gang. It took her by surprise to realiz that James is here as well. She gives him a grin over Shiro’s shoulder and says, “Fancy meeting you here!” 

An explosion goes off and the ships lists to the right, Shiro’s arms tighten around her keeping her steady. Pidge murmurs “Um, that’s you guys, right? Cuz honestly with my luck lately, it could be someone else attacking the ship!”

Keith pauses, listening finally nodding, stating definitely, “Mom.”

Pidge smiles, “Aww, she came too!! She does care! Well listen, we really need to book, see, well, there’s this alien and he thinks I’m marrying him today or maybe it’s tomorrow, it’s really hard to keep time when you are injured, so, we really need to get out of dodge, like yesterday.” She sees everyone freeze and thinks she can hear Matt yelling through Shiro’s comm device. She lifts her bag, “Hence my prison break supplies.”

Keith moves forward and grabs her hand, “Hold on to Cosmo, we can get to the ship now. He can come back for the others.” She looks up into Keith’s eyes and finally notices how tired he is. Shit looking around, they probably look worse then she does. But suddenly, she notices that all the guys are quiet. Lance hugs her as well and eyebrow arched comments on her sexy costume. This in turn has Keith taking a good long look at her. He’s definitely turning red and she says, crossing her arms defensively, “What?”

Keith just shakes his head, whispering, “So um, new outfit?”

She looks down, only to turn red herself. “Oh yeah, the whole pirate thing is really a thing here. I bet I looked dumb! Shit, it’s not like I chose my outfit.”

Keith quickly shakes his head in the negative. “No, really you’re a sight for sore eyes. You look…”

Griffin, stepping to their space, missing the whole interaction “Yes, please, we definitely need to get you outa here.”

“Wait, no, I’m not just leaving you guys! Where is your extraction point? What’s the plan?”

Keith groans, “Please Pidge, you have no idea how worried I, I mean, we all have been.” Suddenly, Keith grabs your other hand hand and takes another step to you, pulling her close. “Please.”

Pidge smirks, “That’s sweet and we’ll revisit this later. But right now, let’s get to the control room and shut these pirates down!! Contact your mom and let her know that you found me, and they can meet us there. I assume my brother and Hunk have the layout by now. Damn, can I get an earpiece? I hate being out of contact with you all.”

Everyone looks to Shiro, who slowly agrees, “As long as you are feeling ok, and stay by us, I agree. We don’t want these pirates out free.” He doesn’t even have to ask, before Keith is offering one of his comms for her. 

Later…

The command room doors swish open and Krolia steps through. She grabs Pidge in her arms, picking her up and holding her close. “Are you ok? Are you hurt?”

Pidge’s eyes fill with tears holding on tight to Krolia. “I’m okay, just some bumps and bruises. I just need to get home. (Looks up-speaking quietly) Thanks for coming for me.”

Krolia smiles, “Of course, my little one. Besides, Keith would”

“MOM!” Keith interrupts loudly. 

Pidge looks over to Keith, staring for a moment, he turns red and averts his eyes. At that, Pidge’s eyebrow arches and she thinks what was that about...

Kolivan steps up and grabs Pidge as well, enveloping her in hug, “Hello Little Brave one. I knew you were too wily to be killed.” Pidge smiles and holds on tight, Kolivan was a man of few words but the fact that he was here speaks volumes. As does the embrace he gives her.

She pulls herself together, trying to focus on what needs to be done. “Hey Mattie. You’re not an only child yet. But seriously, ok, let me get control of this ship and um, break up my potential wedding.”

“WEDDING!!!” I don’t even know who said it but Krolia and Kolivan look shocked. 

“Yeah, I think he’s the captain, guy in charge…maybe, or at least he acted like it. He found out I was a Paladin and thought we’d make (at all the frowns) or um whatever. I’d like to clear up his misconceptions.”

Suddenly, Griffin, red-faced, “Um, where did you get that *hand waving* outfit.” 

Pidge looks down, “Oh, well, this is what they gave me. Why?” She looks up and realizes everyone is staring at her. Again. She can’t help but think, she must look ridiculous if even Shiro is avoiding eye contact. “Shiro?”

Shiro coughs, “Um, it’s just you look very um…. cute! Yes, you look super cute! Very um…can we just move on?”

Pidge’s face heats up but quickly agrees. “Okay I’m going to hack their system give me a few minutes.”

James asks, “Won’t it take you a while? You should get out of here now.” Everyone else laughs, when Pidge states, “I’m in. Seriously James, I’m freakin Robin. No one can keep me out.”

She pulls up screen after screen until ultimately finding where the crew is setting up for a wedding. ”Ugh, guys as much as I want to just leave, the captain did heal me, so I’m thinking I will tell him the engagement is off and I’m going home. Just so there aren’t any mixups. Cuz honestly I don’t think my mom and dad will react too well to me marrying a space pirate.”


	6. Endings and Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to leave!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this story and I’m super proud that i actually finished one! I’d appreciate any feedback!

Slowly murmurs of assent were given, (possible due to the mean mug Pidge was sporting at their hesitance). Pidge essentially handed the ship’s communication devices and main control system over to her brother and Hunk. Both were throwing up roadblocks and misdirecting many pirates to give them time. Many were locked in their rooms or areas were shut down. For a change, Pidge’s luck held, and Hunk reported that there were cruisers in the holding bay of what looks like to be the location for the wedding.

They silently enter the room, which is huge. They quickly look around, noting the position of doors, ships and people. Kolivan and Krolia quickly go to a ship, deciding to hot wire it so they are ready when it’s done. Deciding she needs to be quick about it, Pidge takes a deep breath and taps the captain on the shoulder with her friends close behind, the best backup a gal could ask for. “Excuse me kind sir.”

Keith and Lance shake their heads, sometimes Pidge is just too much. They catch each other’s eyes and Lance smirks. Regardless, both flank her, ready to defend and truth be told to fight. However, the rest of the group just seems resigned that she is going to talk to the captain and just hope she makes it fast. Matt is also on the comm letting Pidge know their mom is having a hard time waiting. 

Pidge internally smiles while outwardly having no reaction, calmly states, “Captain, I wanted to let you know that I am leaving with my friends and you should not try and follow me because, quiet frankly, I’m tired. You don’t own me. I was on my way of saving myself and you cannot tell me what to do. And most importantly, if that wasn’t clear enough-I’m not marrying you.”

The captain doesn’t say anything rather he looks around nodding to his men as if saying, you are staying put. Pidge sighs, of course he was going to be stubborn, “Look, let me be crystal clear. I’m not asking permission. I am thankful for the medical attention and food, period. If you want, I can send you some money or something but I’m not thankful enough to get married to you.”

The room quiets. The space pirates stand ready to fight, moving closer and encircle the group. Kolivan and Krolia silently emerge ready for a fight. But then the captain pauses and abruptly switches tactics. He cocks his head and lowers his voice, moving closer to Pidge, imploring instead of demanding, “When I saw your message, it pulled me out a void I didn’t even know I was trapped in. Finding you, hurt yet so strong, it made me realize I wanted more. (He takes her hand) I need more. Love, kids, a dynasty. We can build that together. 

Pidge doesn’t let her eyes leave his. Instead she stands taller somehow imbuing her small stature with an air of maturity and poise beyond her years. “Keona, I can understand where you think you want more with me. But you don’t know me. I’m a bad bet and judging by your success you are not a guy who takes dumb risks.”

While Pidge is maintaining eye contact and radiating truthfulness, Keith can’t help but frown, when hearing her reason. She must be lying; she can’t really believe that! She’s his only bet. The best bet. But he bites his tongue letting Pidge handle the situation. Trusting her and content to wait and talk to her privately Keith remains still and watchful. Unfortunately, Lance is not as quiet. He laughs, “Look Captain, she’s not yours or ours. She’s her own person and you saw what she did to the ship she was on! Do you want worse?” 

The captain finally nods. “I may not agree but I will not keep you as a hostage. Please feel free to contact me if you change your mind.”

Pidge nods and offers a hand. The captain looks confused until another alien explains and he shakes Pidge’s hand. Her offers her a shuttle, asking only that if she ever wants to visit to use the shuttle at her discretion. Everyone shifts over to the shuttle and Shiro takes the controls. 

Keith sits next to Pidge, “You feeling okay?”

“Yeah, I’m just tired. I’m sorry, you all have better things to do than rescue me.”

Keith interrupts, “I’m going to have to stop you right there. No one was forced to look for you. We all needed to, shit, we’re a team. You would never have hesitated.”

Pidge’s eyes fill with tears, and she takes a long slow breath. “Duh.”

Keith urges her to rest but she can’t. She closes her eyes and breathes deeply, finally taking the comm out of her ear. She can’t take much more noise, she doesn’t know why suddenly now, why she feels so wound up. It’s like every sound is magnified and she can’t focus on just one thing. She wishes she could get up and pace but there is not enough room. She looks for Cosmo, wanting to hold on to something but she doesn’t see him. She ends up picking at a scab on her leg, focusing on the pain when she’s suddenly lifted up and settled onto Keith’s lap. 

She looks up, and suddenly Lance is next to her talking a mile a minute, about the farm, his cousins and his ongoing issue with Kaltenecker. Between Keith’s solid and warm presence behind her and Lance’s voice, she finally feels herself relax. She finally feels like she can take a deep breath and she’s filled with Keith’s scent and suddenly she feels Cosmo licking her fingers. It’s like her senses are cocooned with safety and she finally passes out.

Later….

Keith is standing outside of the pod holding Pidge. He’s sitting across from her pod on the floor, patiently waiting. Secure in the knowledge that she will be getting out soon. The door opens and Keith doesn’t bother looking up. He figured he’d come by sooner or later.  
Griffin closes the door and looks at the timer on the pod. “So, you like Katie?”

Keith grunts. Griffin stares but Keith doesn’t give an inch. The only one he owes an explanation to is Pidge. Finally, he asks, “What are you going to do? If you just leave again, I am telling you now, I like her and will be trying to do everything in my power to see that she reciprocates my feelings.”

“My feelings for Pidge will not be discussed with anyone before I talk to her. You’ll know when that happens. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to talk to Pidge when she gets out. Alone.”

Griffin stares at Keith and sees a shadow of the same stubbornness he always saw in Keith’s gaze and clenched jaw from their youth. Fuck, Griffin thinks, he won’t have a chance with her now. He nods to Keith and quietly offers, “If it means anything to you, I think you and she will fit.”

Keith again nods, and as the door softly closes, he looks to the pod, 5 more minutes. 

The End


	7. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Epilogue Bonus due to requests!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all, I’ve been in a slump for writing so I decided to kickstart my butt into gear by going back and writing Pidge’s response to Keith’s love. Hope you like! Also, I hope all of you are safe. It’s been a trying time right now but I just want to put out there that I support the BLM movement and think we can all do better. Love!

Pidge feels herself being unlocked from restraints. Did they catch, whoa, her brain may be fine but none of her muscles work at all! She feels herself falling forward despite willing her body to stand. Rationally she reasons she was in the pod but she feels an other worldliness that she cannot describe, none of her muscles work and she’s lost track of time. Suddenly, her body hits a wall. A very solid and warm one. She looks up and her gaze meets Keith. Scratch that, not a wall, just Keith and while she cannot really control her movements she knows she’s safe. Keith would never let anything hurt her. 

Keith holds her and makes his way carefully to sit on a cot cradling her in his arms, moving so slowly that Pidge doesn’t even feel any jarring. Pidge finds herself caught in Keith’s gaze, which is much more intense and focused than usual. She has no clue what’s on his mind but she knows what’s on hers. Almost dying certainly can give a girl perspective. She’s tired of hiding her feelings for Keith and wants to fess up and see what he wants. If there is a chance. That’s the right thing do??? 

But as quickly as she resolves to speak she hesitates. She doesn’t want to risk their friendship, their connection. Maybe it was enough. She opens her mouth only to close it. 

Lost in her own thoughts, she barely hears Keith say, “So, what’s this I’m hearing about you not sleeping and eating?”

Shit! Who snitched?  
“Pidge, why didn’t you say something?” He strokes her hair from her eyes and looks directly at her, “Didn’t you trust me to understand?”

Pidge switches gears, scrambling to find an answer he would accept. “Yeah, of course I trust you!!! Always, all of you. It’s just, you know how it is. It’s just been a rough few months. It’s just that, everyone is finding their place and I felt like I was stagnating. Stuck. People are getting married, helping save planets, and here I am. Back on Earth, basically living with my parents. But I’m okay, I’m fine, really. (Sigh)”

Keith responds, “Yeah, okay, I can buy that but why didn’t you say anything? (Softly) To me? I told you I’d always be there for you. And if I’m being totally honest, it hurt hearing it from your brother.”

Pidge nods, “Ugh, he’s such a tattle tale!” But then I notices how he’s not laughing. “Okay, look, I know. But you are busy and you don’t need to hold my hand. Believe it or not, I’m a big girl. I’m not a kid anymore.”

Keith looks so serious I question what’s wrong. Something is happening here. Fuck! I don’t want to hurt his feelings!

Keith then holds me tighter and pulls me even closer, I swear I can feel his heartbeat. He arranges my legs so they are on the bed and he scoots back so his back is on the wall. I’m sitting across the his lap with his right arm supporting my back. Maintaining eye contact, he takes a deep breath, “Pidge, I know you are a big girl, but I…I need you to know, I love you. I’ve loved you for a while. But I was scared of unbalancing our relationship, scared of voicing my feelings, scared of so many things. Then I get a message.” 

He stops talking and instead hugs me tight. His head burrows into my neck/shoulders, just holding me tight. “You’ve gotta know that I would do anything, drop anything to help you. But I HATED hearing that you were in trouble from Shiro. I hated not knowing you weren’t safe on Earth. Please don’t block me out. Let me help.”

Pidge freezes, absently thinking, she must still be in the pod. There’s no way her life just suddenly aligned with how she has dreamed. She shakes her head and runs her fingers through her hair. She takes a deep breath in, “Um, I must be really out of it, so can you um, run that by me again?”

Keith smiles softly, “No…words aren’t enough. I almost lost you, and I went mad. Literally. I did things that I didn’t know I was capable of without a second thought. Please, let me show you-what you mean to me.” Keith leans towards her and softly brushes a kiss against her lips. “I need you, so much. Do you thing you could ever feel the same?”

Pidge’s eyes fill with tears. “Keith, I’ve felt this way for you for so long. But, I didn’t want to push you. I…can’t be the one who holds you back.”  
Keith smiles, “Katie, don’t you know, you could never hold me back. So how about when you go off planet I’m in the loop? Or better yet, I’m with you.”

A couple of hours later, Lance comes in to find his friends, snoozing on a twin cot next to the wall along the healing pod. He isn’t 100% sure but he doesn’t think they have clothes on under that blanket! Ick!!! But never the less he smiles and closes the door softly, rapidly talking through his ear piece, “Guys, come in, Kidge has officially commenced! Thank goodness for small miracles. I don’t think there are two other humans who are quite this oblivious in the history of the time! And I think everyone owes me at least one drink!!!”

He can hear groans all around and he knows, he’s going to get some fun out of the pictures he just took! Hey, it’s all in good fun…plus he needed the proof for drinks.


End file.
